Year 12 - 2025/2026: Here we go again!

[QueenMabby]

A new thread for the new school and college year. A friendly thread for parents of those going into year 12 in September 2025.

Well done to all DC getting through their first week, and to all us parents too!

My DD was also totally shattered last night, but has had a good first week. She's starting to realise it's going to be lots of hard work and has had loads of homework already!

Sounds like most are doing really well. Well done all! DD2 started lessons yesterday. A picture of her in the world's shortest school skirt has already appeared on the Insta and I got a text from one of her friend's parents who works at the school laughing about this, so I'm wondering how long the skirt is going to last. She was also NOT wearing her blazer. Great.

She's already had a setting test for the only subject they set by ability at her school, which is music - so weird. Apparently very, very difficult. She only has grade 5 theory which she took at 10 and then promptly forgot the lot so I'm resigned she'll be languishing in the middle.

Lessons this am as well (sad!) but mainly total fear that she's also top bassoon in symphony and they're doing Young Person's Guide to the Orchestra, which has a huge and exposing solo.

Six hour full rehearsal tomorrow so I suspect she'll spend all afternoon today practising. At least she's back on Friday.

DD started Thursday and has met lots of nice people. She seems to think her drama group is huge - 12 in the class, because there are 4 in the year above! I pointed out 12 is much better because it's still small and what if you didn't like the other 3 in a tiny class?!

I'm still sad she's not doing Spanish but there we go!

Full timetable starts next week. It's not too bad - one day there are 2 periods + lunch between classes, otherwise it's consecutive. We don't live that far away so it would be possible to come home between if she wanted, but I think she might use that for focused study time. I hope!!

I am being sent on a mission to buy folders this morning. Apparently he wants different colours to coordinate subjects/teachers. This is from the boy that literally had a mountain of unorganised folders and paperwork piled up for two years of GCSEs 🤷🏼‍♀️

He chose to stay at school, while all his best friends chose to leave. He had very sensible educational reasons for doing so and i was really proud of him for not just following the crowd to college when it didn’t suit him. I think he was a bit anxious about it over the summer though, so it’s been good to get through the first couple of days and establish that he’s got someone he gets in with in every class and people to sit with in private study. He’s been on calls with his best friends every evening and everything they’ve told him about college has made him happier about his choice to stay at school - so that’s good too!

I am cautiously optimistic - DS seems to have had a good 3 days , he’s spoken to his friends that had to leave as they didn’t get the necessary average point score and he’s spoken to some of the new starters … not over tired from doing the 4 A levels ( including Further Maths ) either .

Glad to see others seem quite happy too … fingers crossed

Advice needed. Dd got 9/8 in science. 1 mark off the 9/9. EO has been helpful. I have the papers. I have looked at the chemistry papers (chemistry degree). They have clearly not given her a mark on a correct answer. On the other side they might deduct marks elsewhere (I don’t have the mark scheme). I have emailed the HOD to ask whether it’s a good idea, which papers would be best to be remarked, and even my thoughts on the marking. Nothing, not even an acknowledgment of receipt. Am
thinking of going back to EO on Monday to check I have the right email address/is she the right contact. I’ll email the head next week if I hear nothing (I know him quite well from working at his old school). There is a pattern at the school of teachers not responding. I’m still waiting to hear from one of her teachers from when she didn’t mark some of my daughter’s mocks for the correct score. In her mocks she was given a 4. In her actual exam she got a 9. Glad we were relying on that mock for anything.
Any advice helpful.

Is there a Physics teacher here who would be willing to look at one 4-mark AQA question?

I haven't heard back from the teacher or HoD and would feel more comfortable chasing next week if someone qualified agreed there is something to consider.

I note Physics wasn't in a list I saw of most reviewed subjects.

So I am interested to know how much homework is being expected. DS is starting with 4 A levels and has no study time during the school day as they do lots of extension work and supra curriculum stuff. They are asking for 6 hours of homework. He has a 30 minutes train journey at each end of the day so is hoping to get most of it done then but time will tell.

Our school recommends one hour of independent study for each hour timetabled (normal lessons, they don't do extra curricular.)

Yes but that normally is seperate to homework answers/time which I wouldn't include in the independent study recommendations. @RigbyRight Is it 6 hours for all 4? That seems pretty normal on the whole - what 4 subjects is it?

So it’s 6 hours per week. He is doing Maths, further maths, physics and computer science. They say 2 hours per week per subject with maths and further maths counting as one.

Yes that seems pretty fair as the standard, as those doing 4 A-levels with 4 different subjects would have 8 as a baseline like I did (not that FM isn't separate or he isn't doing 4 just that they count it together whereas it wouldn't work with any other subjects).

Sometimes it may differ based on teachers as well as to how much they set across the year, I found that it dipped and rose according to when things needed to, my teachers had the attitude of they'd set when it needed to be set, but wouldn't just set something for the sake of meeting the 2 hour target, it's the start of Y12 though so they're setting out expectations and benchmarks, it's unlikely that it will always be 2h every week, but some weeks it may be more and others less, it all balanced out.

My DD was told 5 hours per week per subject independent study - so 20 total. 6 hours per week total sounds very little. Six hours per week per subject (for 4) sounds a lot!

Same here 5 hours per subject - one hour spent in the classroom equates to a further hour of work outside of the classroom.
This will be split between tasks set by their teachers and additional private study
including wider reading, research, note making and revision of learning.

Hi all, caught up with the thread! Been spending time getting ds prepped for Y9 and dd prepped for Y12 while getting back into the throes of work (took me 2 weeks to get over my jet lag 🤨). Dd had her induction last Thursday but was only 3 hours so had the rest of the week free.

There are a fair few people from her school going to the same college but unsurprisingly in different tutors, classes etc. She has 3 days with 3 hour gaps in her classes but I’ve suggested she use it to do all independent study and homework to free up her time at home. She will also no doubt meet new people with the same breaks. She currently uses a gym close to home but looking at changing to one near the college so can use some of the time for that too.

She starts on Monday officially so will feel it next week after enjoying lots of lie ins - although she has every Monday morning off so not too shabby!

Glad lots have settled in well and enjoying it so far.

How much core maths does she do in a week?
DC school does an hour a week over two years, and it's certainly less time-consuming than an EPQ!

My dd is to do 2 hours a week for the first year so would equal the same amount overall (clearly I don’t need core maths with those adding skills 🤣). We have put in for a review of her maths as was one mark off a 6. Highly unlikely that she will get that mark but thought it worth a punt as she won’t have to do core maths if she gets upgraded.

Over the 2 week timetable its 3 hours per week plus an hour prep each week. But they only do it for year 12 so will take the exam next may. Quite glad she choose it and not an epq!

Does your dd not want to do core maths anyway? Is she also doing epq?

Not really, she’s only doing it because she got a 5 in maths and it’s a pre requisite of psychology if you get less than a 6 - she doesn’t really enjoy it! It’s frustrating because any other of the past 3/4 years, she would have got a 6 with her marks. That said, she accepts it and will make the best of it. She doesn’t actually know we’ve paid for a review because she didn’t want to spend the money (I think spending it would make her feel extra pressure, if that makes sense). If there’s no upgrade, she will never know!

She isn’t doing an epq but I think she would prefer this if she didn’t have to do core maths - would appeal to her creative side. They also have to sign up for an enrichment activity and she want to do a degree apprenticeship so will have her work cut out applying for those. I really hope she hits the ground running!

Just to throw out there, maths is a really important part of psychology and if she ends up interested in pursuing that at degree level core maths might well be beneficial in her applications.

This is partly why my dd is doing core maths not an epq, as she does psychology

As a psychology academic I’d agree with this. Too many students start psychology degrees without understanding the maths/stats understanding that is required to do well:

I agree with you and think she will get something out of it - she will have chance to do a few lessons before the result of the review becomes apparent so she might find she quite likes it! I’m not too concerned about needing the maths for psychology side of things; I did a psychology degree and only got a c in maths (highest grade as did intermediate) and later a foundation course as did something else after my GCSEs and I never found the maths element particularly difficult. I think like me, dd prefers stats to algebra! I think it would look good on her CV though and useful if she went further with psychology. At the moment, business and media are her passions. 🙂

Public service announcement - if you are having papers remarked do check the school has remarked the RIGHT papers. DD1 in floods of tears as her a-level politics (which was a real surprise result and both teachers strongly recommended a remark) had come back unchanged. Sat on it for a week, then opened the email attachment sent by her EO to show a friend, only to discover they had in fact remarked one of her history papers, in which she had got an A. She's in bits and now we have to go through it all again. Hopefully there is still time.